310 A Sportsman at Large 



" God be praised, I was there to warn you, sir," was Bedford's 

 simple remark. 



Meanwhile, Bonehead had skirted round to the deep end, 

 where we had seen the great fish basking. By a very long cast, 

 he hoped to cover the nearest ; though now, being on a level 

 with the surface, he could no longer fix their exact locality. 

 For some time his efforts proved fruitless, but all of a sudden 

 we saw his rod bend almost double and heard his reel screech ; 

 we scrambled round to him as fast as we could contrive, only 

 to find, on our arrival, a disconsolate guy, with vertical rod 

 and broken cast. 



" He straightened me out and smashed me to atoms," he 

 sighed. " Goodness knows what sort of fish he was, or how 

 big, but, my Lord, he did give me a feel, Cockie." 



While all this was going on, the female contingent, with 

 " Johann " on escort duty, had remained in the bosky 

 recesses of the hill. We now joined them, unpacked our 

 rations and enjoyed a welcome alfresco repast, amid the most 

 weird surroundings it has ever been my luck to strike. 



Whilst smoking the pipe of peace and contentment on a bed 

 of the softest and dryest moss, I gazed around in wonder- 

 ment at the awesome solitude of the scene, which forcibly 

 reminded me of the stage set wherein Rip van Winkle took 

 his twenty-years' nap on the Katskill Mountains. 



After rest and refreshment, I essayed to emulate my young 

 friend's adventure at the deep end of the haunted pool, but 

 though I tried many seductive flies, and spun spoon and 

 minnow, not a touch rewarded my efforts. 



Our homeward journey was effected without any striking 

 incident, though once more we had to endure the thrills and 

 tremors of the perilous passage of the Rauma. 



That evening when Johann came in for orders, I asked him 

 how the mystic pool was called. 



" It sure has no name, as far as I am wise, Boss," he said. 



" Let us christen it ' Lake Cockie ! ' " suggested my C.O. 



Carried unanimously ! 



THE END 



